Millions of emails
Joachim himself declined to provide his last name or workplace because his employer does not want to be associated with the campaign. POLITICO has verified his identity. Joachim said his employer has no commercial interest in the legislation, and he alone paid the costs associated with running the website.
Joachim's mass email campaign is unconventional as a lobbying tool, differing from the more wonky approach usually taken in Brussels. But the website's impact has been undeniable.
The Polish government responded directly to the campaign in a statement last month, reassuring Poles it's against mass scanning of messages. A Danish petition, pushed by the Fight Chat Control campaign, now has more than 50,000 signatures, meaning it can be discussed in parliament. Irish national lawmakers asked questions in parliament in September about "Chat Control," the name for the legislation adopted by its critics and used by Joachim.
As of early October, nearly 2.5 million people had visited his website, Joachim said, with most coming from within the EU. The emails are sent from visitors' own email clients, meaning Joachim doesn't know how many have been sent, but he estimated that it has triggered several million emails.
The campaign has irked some recipients. “In terms of dialog within a democracy, this is not a dialog,” said Lena Düpont, a German member of the European People’s Party group and its home affairs spokesperson, of the mass emails.
Joachim's campaign is blocking more traditional lobbyists and campaigners, too, they said. Mieke Schuurman, director at child rights group Eurochild, said the group’s messages are no longer reaching policymakers, who “increasingly respond with automated replies.”